Switching device for spooling and spinning machines



Nov. 20, 1962 FIG. 5

H. SCHIPPERS ETAL 3,064,910

SWITCHING DEVICE FOR SPOOLING AND SPINNING MACHINES Filed Jan. 4, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet l |NVENTORS= HEINZ CH|PPERS PAUL HORST ER WOLFGANG WEBQ BY Nov. 20, 1962 H. SCHIPPERS ETAL 3,064,910

SWITCHING DEVICE FOR SPOOLING AND SPINNING MACHINES Filed Jan. 4, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 L INVENTORS2 HEINZ cH|PP PAUL HO E WOLFGAN WEBER BY ATT'YS Nov. 20, 1962 H. SCHIPPERS ETAL 3,064,910

SWITCHING DEVICE FOR SPOOLING AND SPINNING MACHINES Filed Jan. 4, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTORS: HEINZ SQHIPPERS PAUL HORSTER WOLFGANG United States Patent 3,064,910 SWITCHING DEVECE FDR SPOOLING AND SlINNlNG MACHINES Heinz Schippers, Paul Horster, and Wolfgang Weber, all of Remscheid-Lennep, Germany, assignors to Banner Maschinenfahrilr Aktiengesellschaft, Wuppertal-Oberbarman, ermany Filed .lan. 4, 1960, fier. No. 368 Claims priority, application Germany Jan. 7, 1959 11 (llaims. (Cl. 24218) The invention relates to switching devices adapted to be used in spooling and spinning machines, especially those for processing synthetic threads, which devices shift a drive roller into or out of driving relationship with thread winding spools.

Mechanical designs and techniques for bringing the spool into frictional driving engagement with a drive roller at the beginning of the winding and the lifting of the spool from the drive roller, especially at the end of the winding, as well as for the braking and releasing of the spool for the purposes of its exchange for an empty spool, are in themselves known in spool heads. The spool holder carrier ordinarily is designed as a swivel arm. In their operation, the swivel arm or the spool holder carrier is moved toward the drive roller or away from it and, if need be, the devices servingfor the braking and releasing of the spool, situated on or in the spool holder carrier, are activated. This is accomplished by means of cooperating levers and handles. They require manipulation on the part of the operators of various grips and movements. Especially in the cases requiring substantial contact pressure and rapid transfer of the torque from the drive roller onto the spool, they require exertion of substantial physical strength. The complicated and time-consuming manipulation of the various operating steps is felt to be disadvantageous in the previous devices of this general type; especially in case of possible accidental interchange of the shifting levers in direction or sequence there occur disturbances or interruptions in the winding process or even damage to the machinery.

Our invention is based on the basic premise of avoiding errors in shifting or in switching sequence and/ or for the simplification of the shifting mechanism for the individual shifting operations. The essential feature is the activation or de-activation, and also for the braking and releasing of the spool, by means of one and the same switching device and to render all the shifting steps operable by the same control member. 7

According to the invention, switching devices are employed for the various arrangements, in themselves known, for the activition or deactivation of the friction drive roller relative to the spool, bringing to bear or pressing on and lifting otf, and also for the braking and releasing of the spool, wherein a shifting member is arranged to he slid and/ or turned. Said member is shiftable in stages and has projections or recesses which, upon operation of the switching member, engage in correspondingly designed control or shifting means, depending on the switching stage, and also on the operating position of the spool holder carrier moving out as the winding grows. The shifting member designed in accordance with our invention, for example, a slide, eccentric or the like, as mounted directly adjacent the side of the spool holder carrier. It may be on the machine frame in a place at which, with its. projections or recesses, it protrudes into the range and the activates and releases those control or shifting means. The operation of the shifting member may be accomplished by hand or, if need be, by way of corresponding inter- In its operation, depending on the operating 3,064,910 Patented Nov. 20, 1962 mediate members, such as rods, cable line or the like, by foot by means of a shifting lever held in its basic position by spring pressure or weighted cable line, which shifting member is shiftable in stages. In the latter arrangement the movement from stage to stage is limited by a stop or a latch.

The switching is accomplished by means of one and the same switching member in stages corresponding to the number of the switching operations, in which stages the shifting member always engages the control or shifting member to be operated at that particular time and sets off the desired shifting process.

In a shifting member designed, for example, as a sliding head, the projections or recesses provided on it, which are to engage the corresponding control or shifting means, can be arranged in such a manner that they become opera-' tive with progressive sliding in stages of the slide in the same direction successively. Since the control and shifting means move out with the growth of the vWinding on the spool, the arrangement and design of the projections or recesses on the slide is determined on the one hand, by the switching path of each shifting stage, and on the other hand by the. path of the control and shifting means moving out, running transversely thereto. For the shorts ening of the switching range and the shifting paths and, accordingly, simplification of the switching device, the shifting slide may, however, be mounted and arranged in such a manner that after each shifting stage or switching sequence it returns to its starting position and in the further shifting in the next stage operates, with the same slide projection, a diiferent control or shifting means.

Finally, besides the shifting slide, an auxiliary device, e.g., a lever, may be provided, which operates in a swing ing movement with sliding of the slide head and, as such, acts as a lengthened arm of the shifting slide.

Further details of the invention are contained in the description of the specific examples of the invention repre-' sented in the drawing.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a thread winding mechanism with a switching device according to our invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the spool holder carrier with the shifting member in two characteristic operating positions;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are perspective views of an embodiment of the shifting member according to the invention and the control and shifting means to be shifted by it on the spool holder carrier;

FIGS. 5 and 7 each are perspective views of embodi ments of foot treadle mechanism for the operation of the shifting member; and

FIG. 6 isa side elevation of another embodiment of the shifting member in the switching level with the control and shifting means, which are mounted on the spool holder carrier and are to be activated by means of the switching member.

In FIG. 1 a thread winding installation is schematically represented. The threads 1 are brought in from the spinning head or from another delivery point, by way of the driven godets 2 and 3. By way of a. traverse-motion, thread guide or thread distributing device 4 designed as a rotating slot drum, the threads, yarns, e'tc., conducted to the spool 6 driven by a friction drive roller 5, are wound thereon. The spool 6 is seated on a usual type spool holder 7, which is borne on the spool holder carrier 8,

ordinarily designed as a swivel arm or as a movableslide.

from the spool holder 7, separated by itself on the machine 'frame 11, the switching device for raising and lowering the spool 6 relative to drive roller 5, as well as for the braking and releasing of the spool 6. This switching device consists, for example, of a slide head 12 equipped with projections and recesses shown in FIG. 3. The slide head 12 runs in or on a guide 13 and is adjustable, in which process, by means of its projections or recesses, it engages in the correspondingly arranged control and adjusting means, shown in FIG. 4, on the backside of the spool holder carrier 8. The adjusting and shifting is accomplished by operation of the foot treadle 14, which is connected with the shifting slide 12 by way of a lever rod 15.

The embodiment of FIGS. 2 to 4, is especially advantageousbecause of the simple design of the shifting slide and short shifting paths. FIG. 2 shows on a larger scale the head of the spool holder carrier 8 at the beginning of the winding process and, with dot-and-dash lines, the position of the carrier at the time. of the winding of the fully wound spool. The shifting member 12 is represented in the basic operating position and in dot-and-dash lines in the first switching position. For the better understanding of the switching device and the switching movement processes, the same arrangement of the shifting slide 12 with segments of the control and adjusting means situated in front of it is illustrated in FIG. 3. In FIG. 4 is shown the head of the spool holder carrier 8 turned about through 90 to the right, with the control and adjusting means mounted on its rear side.

According to FIGS. 2 and 3, as well as FIG. 1, the shifting slide 12 equipped with projections 16 and 17 is suspended at its upper end with its hook 18 on a spring 19 hanging from the machine frame. It is guided by its dovetailed groove 20 in the cam groove 13 securely seated in the machine frame and is slidable. downwardly by pulling in the vertical direction on its lug 21 and the rod 15 attached to it. According to FIGS. 1 and 4, the spool holder carrier 8 is supported at one end with its axle 22 in the bearing 23. On the spool holder carrier 8 or its axle 22 a lever arm 9 can be mounted, with adjustable weight shiftable on it. On its upper end the spool holder carrier 8 carries the bearing 23 for the spool holder axle 24, which, in .a known manner, is arranged to slide axially under spring tension. Its rearward end 25 is provided with a bevelled guide surface on the rear side of the spool holder carrier 8. Beside and under the rear end 25 of the spool holder axle 24 there is seated on the backside of spoolholder carrier 8 a setting lever 26 for the urging or pressing of the spool against the drive roller. Said lever is mounted to turn with its axle 27 in the spool holder carrier 8 and, by means of the coil spring 28 attached at its one end to the axle 27 and with its other end to the spool holder carrier 8, is pre-tensed. In this arrangement it bears in its basic position with its stop 29 against the prong 30. The spring pressure on setting lever 27 is employed to resist rotation of lever 26 so that pressure, in addition to that applied by weight 10, is applied via the spool carrier to the spool against the friction drive roller to give a more rapid acceleration of the spool as the rotation thereof begins. Further, next to the end of the spool holder axle there is a shifting lever 31 for the lifting off and braking of the spool, which is likewise mounted to turn about its axle 32 in the spool holder carrier 8. In any of several manners not represented in detail, it operates the braking device by means of a shifting member 33. Furthermore, there is provided on the spool holder carrier 8 a fixed blocking bar 34.

Next to the shifting slide 12, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, there is carried on a part of the machine frame 35 a swinging auxiliary lever 36 whose one arm 37 is designed as a shifting cam and whose other arm 38, axially offset and designed as a yoke-like setting member, is journaled with arm 37 on the common axle 39. One end of the arm 38 is attached to a pull spring 40, which spring has its other end attached to a part of the machine frame 41 and serves the purpose of restoring the lever to its basic position after operation. This auxiliary lever 36 makes it possible to construct the shifting slide 12 in a considerably shorter arrangementfacilitating the grouping of the various control and adjusting means in the various operating positions of the spool holder carrier as it moves out as the winding diameter increases.

The foot lever mechanism for the operation of the shifting member is separately represented in the illustration of FIG. 5. On the shifting slide 12 or on its extension 21 is attached, by way of an intermediate lever 42 mounted to pivot on the machine frame 11, lever rod 15, which is connected with the foot lever 14, likewise mounted to pivot on the machine frame 11. The foot lever 14, through a spring 43 which is attached to a point 44 of the machine frame, is held in its home position. By operation of the foot lever 14, the position of the shifting slide 12 is changed. In order always to be able to establish precisely the shifting path necessary at any time for the operation of the foot lever 14, there is a latch arm 46 held by a spring 45 mounted on the foot lever 14. The latch arm is pivotable about the bolt 47 in the foot lever 14 and on shifting of the foot lever takes a rest position in either the upper or lower catch or notch of a fixed stage rest 48. The latch arm 46 is arranged as an angle lever whose one arm 49 is likewise designed as a foot lever and, through operation of the lever, releases the locking mechanism.

The manner of operation and functioning of the switching device according to FIGS. 1 to 5 is as follows: The spool holder carrier 8 moves during the winding process out of its starting position to the right, into the end position represented in dot-and-dash lines. At the beginning of the winding process, the shifting slide 12 is moved into the first stage or stop, which causes the spool to be pressed against the drive roller. For this purpose the operator steps on the foot lever 14 until the latch arm 46 first locks in the upper notch of the stage rest 48. Upon foot lever movement, the rod 15 pulls on the shackle 21 of the shifting slide 12 and thereby brings it down into the position represented in dot-and-dash lines, in which proc-- ess the cam-like projection 17 presses against the setting lever 26'. Against the pre-tension imparted to this by the spring 28, it swings about the axle 27. To the extent of the spring force, the spool holder carrier 8 with the spool 6 is pressed against the drive roller 5, and the torque of the drive roller is quickly transmitted to the spool. Simultaneously, the shifting slide 12 in this shifting stage contacts the tip 37 of the auxiliary lever 36 to turn its yoke-like arm 38. The latter swings upward under the shifting lever 31 without effect into empty space. The shifting stage as such or the shifting path necessary for this can be limited by a safety blocking bar 34, which the shifting slide 12 with its projection 16 strikes in the case of unintentionally stronger or further stepping on the foot lever 14. By reason of the blocking efiect of safety blocking bar 34, the latch arm 46 will latch only in the upper catch or notch in the lever 46 in the initiation stage of the winding. After a short staying time in the first shifting stage, in which the spool reaches full speed and only the first thread layers are wound onto the spool, the operator releases the lock 46, 48 and, thereby, there is increased contact pressure of the spool against the drive roller, by stepping on the foot lever arm 49whereupon the foot lever mechanism and the shifting slide 12, through the tension in spring 43 and under the auxiliary effect of spring 19, return to their home position.

At the end of the winding process the shifting slide 12 is first brought back into the same first shifting position by the operator. In this process, the shifting slide 12 presses in the same manner as before against the shifting tip 37 of the auxiliary lever 36 and allows the yoke-like arm 38 to swing upward. In doing so, the arm 38, in this position of the spool holder carrier, strikes against the shifting lever 31 and pivots it. As a result of the pressure exerted on the shifting lever 31, which overcomes the counterpressure of the lever arm 9 with the weight It}, the spool holder carrier 8 with the spool 6 is first lifted from the drive roller 5. In the further swinging of the shifting lever 31, its axle 32 with the shifting member 33 turns so far that this member renders operative the braking arrangement (not represented) for the stopping of the rotating spool. The staying time in this shifting stage is also short. The braking of the spool is accomplished very rapidly. Accordingly, the shifting slide 12 can immediately be brought into the next shifting stage, in which the spool 6 is released from its carrier. In order to accomplish this, the operator steps further on the foot lever 14 until the latch arm 46 locks in the lower catch or notch at the stage rest 48. Now the shifting slide 12 moves farther downwardly into a shifting position or stop (not shown) in which the second cam-like projection 16 on the shifting slide 12 contacts the end 25 of the axially slidable spool holder axle 24. The axle, upon sliding, releases in a known manner the spool held in place on a faceplate. After the spool exchange, the switching device-through operation of the foot lever 49, whereby the latch lock 46, 48 is released and simultaneously the spool holder axle 24- and also the faceplate of the spool connected with it return into the previous position is restored to the starting position and a new Winding cycle can be started.

FIG. 6 shows another embodiment with a shifting member designed as a rotatable shifting plate 56]. The plate, by progressive shifting in stages, engages by its projections the control and adjusting means, which as in the previous embodiment, are on the backside of the spool holder carrier. The controlling and adjusting means are provided with the same reference numbers as in FIGS. 3 and 4. The numeral 25 indicates the rear end of the spool holder axis, 27 the axle of the rear setting lever 26 for urging the spool against the drive roller, and 32 the axle of the shifting lever 31 for the lifting oif and braking of the spool. They are shown in the position in which these control and adjusting means are in home position on the shifting level. Since the spool holder carrier moves out as the winding grows, in which case either the swinging arm with the spool holder carrier or a slide head designed as spool holder carrier is pushed away from the drive roller by way of the increasing winding, it finally arrives, when the spool is full, in approximately the position in which the spool holder axle 25 is represented in broken lines and designated as 25. The axle 27 and the setting lever 26 are designated 27 and 26', respectively, and the axle 32 and the shifting lever 31 are designated 32 and 31, respectively. The rotatable plate 50 is rotatable about the fixed pin 51 and is held, for example by the weighted cable line 52 which is attached to the eye 53 in home position before starting. On the shifting plate 50 there are the cam-like projections 54 and 55 and also, on its circumference, the pro-.

jecting stud 56. Furthermore, on the circumference of the shifting plate 50 there is attached to an eye 57 a control cable line 58, which is connected with the foot pedal mechanism of FIG. 5 with the rod 15 instead of the shackle 21.

On operation of the switching device and shifting of the shifting plate 50 in the arrow direction, the cam 54, in the first shifting stage, moves into the position 54 shown in dot-and-dash lines. In doing so, it presses against the lever 26, which presses the spool holder carrier with the spool against the drive roller. The latter immediately transmits its torque to the spool. In the further shifting, the lever 54, in the second shifting stage, moves into the second shifting position 54", represented in dot-and-dash lines, in which the setting lever 26 is again released and returns into its home position. In the double shifting, the cam 55 has simultaneously moved as far as the position 55". During the winding, the spool holder carrier with the spool holder axle 25 and the setting or shifting levers 26 and 31 moves into the position 25, 26' and 31, shown in broken lines, in which they are found at the end of the winding process. In the further shifting of the shifting plate .50 into the third switching position, the cam 55 moves into the position 55", in which it engages the lever 31 inits position 31 and shifts it. On engaging of thelever 31 the spool holder carrier with the spool is lifted from the drive roller, and on further swinging of lever 31', the brake is actuated, which brings the rotating spool to a stop. On further shifting of the shifting plate 50 into the fourth switching position, the projecting tip 56, which arrived in position 56", moves finally into the position 56", in which it engages in the spool holder axle 25 and presses into the spool holder for the release of the spool.

The invention is also similarly employable in winding devices in which the movably mounted drive roller is braced against the fixed-position spool holder carrier and moves out as the winding grows.

On the foot pedal mechanism, but likewise also on the shifting member or on the spool holder carrier, safety devices can be mounted which limit the path or the operativeness of a shifting stage to the requisite degree and insure the correct shifting sequence. If need be, it is also possible to provide indicatordevices which show the shifting stage set, even at a relatively great distance. Such a safety device is, for example, the blocking bar 34. Another safety device consists, for example in arranging the projection 17 on the shifting slide 12 and the setting lever 26 in such a manner that this automatically returns to the home position if the further shifting after the first shifting stage is overlooked or executed too late by the operator. For this purpose the spring 28 serves, on the one hand, to afford the requisite contact pressure against the drive roller, and, on the other hand, also restores the lever 26 toward the home position as far as the stop against prong 30 as soon as the spool holder carrier with the growing spool has moved out beyond the range of the projection 17 to the right (see FIG. 2). The projection 17, accordingly, has preferably only a slight transverse extension. For the visual indication of the stages set, mechanical, electrical or hydraulic devices may be coupled with the shifting slide or with the shifting or pedal mechanism. Such devices in switching devices are known,

especially by way of electrical contacts or hydraulic systems. As a simple mechanical device, for example, a member can be connected with the foot lever mechanism, which, on operation of the latter, is conducted out of the casing or covering of the machine or again disappears in it. For this purpose, as is shown in detail in FIG. 7, the foot lever 14, near its pivot point 66, is equipped with a cranked or offset arm 61, on whose pin 62 the rod 63 is articulated. With its free end, the rod 63 slides out of the covering, or again disappears into it. The arrangement can also be made in such a manner that the rod 63 in a two-stage shifting replaces the stop 48 (see FIG. 5), under which on operation of the foot lever 14, the latch arm 46 is moved into the first shifting position. If need be, the shifting member 12 can also be designed in two parts and be automatically coupled to the shifting lever mechanism so that one part of the shifting slide responds in the first and the other part in the second shifting stage or sequence. a

The invention is hereby claimed as follows: 1. A winding machine with a switching device comprising a shiftable spool carrier, a winding spool rotatably mounted on said carrier, a frictional drive roller, means pressing said spool and its winding thereon against said drive roller during the winding operation, said switching device characterized by a shiftable member mounted on said machine to be shiftable from an inoperative position to a first operative position with relation to said spool carrier at the initiation of the winding operation on said spool, means on said shiftable spool carrier adapted to be activated by said shiftable member when it is shifted to said first operative position to apply pressure, in addition to that applied by said first-mentioned means, between the spool and the friction drive roller in the initial stage of a winding operation, said shiftable member being shiftable during the winding operation to a second operative position with relation to said spool carrier, means on said spool carrier adapted to be contacted by said shiftable member during the winding operation to shift spool out of driving contact with said friction drive roller, and means on said machine for moving said shiftable member from said inoperative position to said operative positions.

2. A winding machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein said means for moving said shiftable member is a manually operated shifting lever operably connected to said shiftable member, said shifting lever being movable from a rest position to a plurality of lever positions, bias means urging said lever to rest position, and disengageable stop means operable to hold said lever in each of said plurality of lever positions.

3. A winding machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein. said shiftable member is mounted immediately adjacent to said spool carrier, said means for applying pressure is on said shiftable spool carrier, and said shiftable member has a projection which presses against said means for applying pressure when said shiftable member is shifted to said first operative position.

4. A winding machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein said means for moving the shiftable member is a foot trcadle operatively connected to said shiftable member, a pivotable arm on said foot treadle having latch means engageable with catch means holding said foot treadle and shiftable member in said first operative position, and means operable by foot pressure to release said latch means from said catch means.

5. A winding machine with a switching device comprising a shiftable spool carrier, a winding spool rotatably mounted on said carrier, a frictional drive roller, means pressing said spool and its winding thereon against said drive roller during the winding operation, said switching device characterized by a shiftable member mounted on said machine to be shiftable from an inoperative position to a first operative position with relation to said spool. carrier at the initiation of the winding operation on said spool, means on said shiftable spool carrier adapted to be activated by said shiftable member when it is shifted to said first operative position to apply pressure, in addition to that applied by said first-mentioned means, between the spool and the friction drive roller in the initial stage of a winding operation, stop means blocking movement of said shiftable member beyond said first operative position when said winding operation begins on an empty spool, said stop means becoming inoperative to block said movement after said shiftable spool carrier has moved away from said friction drive roller as the diameter of the winding on said spool increases, said shiftable member being shiftable during the winding operation to a second operative position with relation to said spool carrier, means on said spool carrier adapted to be contacted by said shiftable member during the winding operation to shift said spool out of driving contact with said friction drive roller, and means on said machine for moving said shiftable member from said inoperative position to said operative positions.

6. A winding machine as claimed in claim 5 wherein said stop means is a projection on said spool carrier engageable with a projection on said shiftable member when said winding operation is in the initial stage of winding, said projection on said carrier moving out of contacting range with said projection on said shiftable member as said spool carrier moves under increasing winding diameter on said spool.

7. The winding machine as claimed in claim 5 wherein said means for applying pressure is a shaft rotatably journalled in said spool carrier, arm means mounted on one end of said shaft, means on said shiftable member engageable with said arm means to apply pressure thereagainst when said shiftable member is shifted to said operative position, causing said arm means and said shaft to rotate, and spring means resisting said rotation of said arm means and shaft.

8. A winding machine with a switching device comprising a shiftable spool carrier, a winding spool rotatably mounted on said carrier, a frictional drive roller, means pressing said spool and its winding thereon against said drive roller during the winding operation, said switching device characterized by a shiftable member mounted on said machine to be shiftable from an inoperative position to a first operative position with relation to said spool carrier at the initiation of the winding operation on said spool, means on said shiftable spool carrier adapted to be activated by said shiftable member when it is shifted to said first operative position to apply pressure, in addition to that applied by said first-mentioned means, be tween the spool and the friction drive roller in the initial stage of a winding operation, stop means blocking movement of said shiftable member beyond said first operative position when said winding operation begins on an empty spool, said stop means becoming inoperative to block said movement after said shiftable spool carrier has moved away from said friction drive roller as the diameter of the winding on said spool increases, a swingable lever on said machine, and lever means on said machine for moving said spool carrier away from said friction drive roller, said shiftable member, when shifted to an operative position at a later stage of the winding operation, engaging means to swing said swingable lever which in turn engages in its swinging movement said lever means to move said spool carrier away from said friction drive roller and thereby deactivate the drive of said roller on the winding on said spool.

9. The winding machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein said means for applying pressure is a shaft rotatably journalled in said spool carrier, arm means mounted on one end of said shaft, means on said shiftable member engageable with said arm means to apply pressure thereagainst when said shiftable member is shifted to said operative position, causing said arm means and said shaft to rotate, and spring means resisting said rotation of said arm means and shaft.

10. The combination of claim 1 wherein said shiftable member further activates means for detaching said spool from said spool carrier upon shifting of said member to a second operative position.

11. The combination of claim 1 wherein said shiftable member further activates means for detaching said spool from said spool carrier upon shifting of said member to a second operative position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 499,634 Insinger June 13, 1893 625,855 Sturgess May 30, 1899 952,015 McKean Mar. 15, 1910 1,205,565 Rand Nov. 21, 191 6 

